The Coxeter Legacy

by Chandler Davis (Editor), Erich W. Ellers (Editor), H.S.M. Coxeter (Contributor)

Donald Coxeter infused enthusiasm, even passion, for mathematics in people of any age, any background, any profession, any walk of life. Enchanted by Euclidean geometry, he was interested in the beauty, the description, and the exploration of the world around us. His involvement in art and with artists earned him admiration and friends in the intellectual community all over the globe. Coxeter's devotion to polytopes and his interest in the theory of configurations live on in his students and followers.Coxeter groups arise in various subjects in applied mathematics, and they have a permanent place in some of the most demanding and fascinating branches of abstract mathematics, such as Lie algebras, algebraic groups, Chevalley groups, and Kac-Moody groups. This collection of articles by outstanding researchers and expositors is intended to capture the essence of the Coxeter legacy. It is a mixture of surveys, up-to-date information, history, storytelling, and personal memories; and it includes a rich variety of beautiful illustrations.

320 pages, Hardcover

First published December 1, 2005

About the author

Horace Chandler Davis (born August 12, 1926 in Ithaca, New York) is an American-Canadian mathematician, writer, educator, and political activist.

He was born in Ithaca, New York, to parents Horace B. Davis and Marian R. Davis. In 1948 he married Natalie Zemon Davis; they have three children. He was a member of the CPUSA and he was fired from the University of Michigan and jailed for his beliefs.

He moved to Canada in 1962 and began teaching at the University of Toronto. A lecture in honour of his stand for his beliefs is now held at the university that fired him.